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Digg it UP - Five Steps for Expanding Your Customer Base with Guerilla Networking
In the popular movie Field of Dreams (based on the fine novel Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella), the main character, Ray Kinsella, receives a message from beyond the earthly realm: "If you build it, he will come." He has no idea what this means and the rest of the movie is about his search to find the meaning. Despite the fact that everyone, including his wife, thinks he's lost his mind, Kinsella proceeds to turn his midwest farmland into a baseball field. He builds it, at great personal cost, risk, loss of income, self-doubt, and humiliation. He builds it, and some of the greatest players in the history of baseball, including Shoeless Joe Jackson, do come.Not only do they come in this fictitious account, I'm told that the actual field used to make the
Look for companies that have taken the time to create and maintain an impressive website. This will give you the opportunity to learn more about their business and will provide countless opportunities for marketing within your network in the future. You should also try to recruit companies with strong brands, so that your brand will strengthen when you co-brand with them.
4. Establish contact
After you have learned about the companies on your list, you should begin establishing contact with them. Your means of presentation will vary depending on what you are comfortable wit
Companies have learnt that they must try to sell those products, which people really want else they could suffer losses. As a result, many companies are making great efforts to adapt themselves to changing customer requirements.When the dot com bubble burst a number of companies suffered heavy losses. Their problems were further compounded with the attack on the Twin Towers. In such a scenario when the very basis of people’s life was affected the market almost died out.Everywhere the hunt was to look for products that could survive in such hard times. Consumers didn’t have much choice, first they were held back by a slow economy and then by the prospect of a nation on the brink of war and chaos. The mood was to save rather than spend on new and frivolous t
The goal of the guerilla network is to expand your customer base by being a part of a diverse web of companies that will appeal to a wide range of customers. Because your company will be the only one in this web to offer your unique product category, every customer who enters into the web will be referred to you for that specific service.
1. Brainstorm
To establish a guerilla network, you must first consider what other resources could be provided for your customer outside of the products and services that you have available at your company. Get to know your customers to discover what other services they generally need when considering your products.
Could they use a designer to help decorate a home gym for the new treadmill they just bought from you? Or how about pet supplies for the dog they walk when using their new pedometer? Whatever it is, think outside the box! More variety means more customers.
2. Make a list
After brainstorming potential additional services, it is time to narrow your search and prepare for the recruitment process. Make a list of the product and service categories that you think will be beneficial in the guerilla network that you wish to create. Then, list specific companies that fall under these categories. Naturally, you should start with companies that you have referred customers to in the past, and who have, in turn, referred customers to you.
Expand that list by thumbing through your local yellow pages or searching the internet. Choosing local companies will give you the flexibility of working with partners who are able to make marketing decisions at the local level, without the inconvenience of running it by their corporate office first. Add companies that you instinctively feel may be fitting for your network. Do not forget to continuously update this list, even after you have moved on to the next step. The longer your list, the better chance you have at building a large and powerful network.
3. Do your homework
Once you have a substantial list of companies in which you are interested, begin researching them. You will want to know if they are a high-end store and if you want their customers frequenting your business. Determine whether or not the company is one you would like to be associated with. Do they exemplify the values that are most important within your own company? Be selective and remember that you will be sending your best customers to their company. Their service will be a reflection of your company and its values.
Look for companies that have taken the time to create and maintain an impressive website. This will give you the opportunity to learn more about their business and will provide countless opportunities for marketing within your network in the future. You should also try to recruit companies with strong brands, so that your brand will strengthen when you co-brand with them.
4. Establish contact
After you have learned about the companies on your list, you should begin establishing contact with them. Your means of presentation will vary depending on what you are comfortable with
As a “glued to the TV” youngster, I watched countless cowboy shows and used to run around the neighborhood spouting cowboy clich?s like, “We’ll cut ‘m off at the pass.”That hokey phrase came to me from somewhere back in my memory the other day when talking to a client who was in trouble with a customer over a delayed delivery. The customer was going to be furious and my client was hoping the problem would just blow over without a confrontation. But somehow we knew that it just wasn’t going to go away.I strongly suggested that, rather than wait until the customer got so angry that they called and verbally exploded, we should “cut ‘m off at the pass” by proactively calling the customer politely and apologize, explaining the situation and what you will be d
1. Brainstorm
To establish a guerilla network, you must first consider what other resources could be provided for your customer outside of the products and services that you have available at your company. Get to know your customers to discover what other services they generally need when considering your products.
Could they use a designer to help decorate a home gym for the new treadmill they just bought from you? Or how about pet supplies for the dog they walk when using their new pedometer? Whatever it is, think outside the box! More variety means more customers.
2. Make a list
After brainstorming potential additional services, it is time to narrow your search and prepare for the recruitment process. Make a list of the product and service categories that you think will be beneficial in the guerilla network that you wish to create. Then, list specific companies that fall under these categories. Naturally, you should start with companies that you have referred customers to in the past, and who have, in turn, referred customers to you.
Expand that list by thumbing through your local yellow pages or searching the internet. Choosing local companies will give you the flexibility of working with partners who are able to make marketing decisions at the local level, without the inconvenience of running it by their corporate office first. Add companies that you instinctively feel may be fitting for your network. Do not forget to continuously update this list, even after you have moved on to the next step. The longer your list, the better chance you have at building a large and powerful network.
3. Do your homework
Once you have a substantial list of companies in which you are interested, begin researching them. You will want to know if they are a high-end store and if you want their customers frequenting your business. Determine whether or not the company is one you would like to be associated with. Do they exemplify the values that are most important within your own company? Be selective and remember that you will be sending your best customers to their company. Their service will be a reflection of your company and its values.
Look for companies that have taken the time to create and maintain an impressive website. This will give you the opportunity to learn more about their business and will provide countless opportunities for marketing within your network in the future. You should also try to recruit companies with strong brands, so that your brand will strengthen when you co-brand with them.
4. Establish contact
After you have learned about the companies on your list, you should begin establishing contact with them. Your means of presentation will vary depending on what you are comfortable wit
At the moment, there is a number of various resume making programs in the software market, especially on the internet. A user can choose between two main types of such software: online applications and desktop tools. Which is more preferable and why? What factors should be considered in the first place? Here is a brief survey on professional resume builders, popular among job seekers who don’t like to draft a resume from scratch.Up-to-date resume makers like Resume for All, Resume Builder and Easy Resume Creator Pro provide a variety of advanced features for creating personalized professional resumes and cover letters that reflect an applicant’s career level and experience. Both desktop and online resume writing programs can make a really outstanding resume and e
Expand that list by thumbing through your local yellow pages or searching the internet. Choosing local companies will give you the flexibility of working with partners who are able to make marketing decisions at the local level, without the inconvenience of running it by their corporate office first. Add companies that you instinctively feel may be fitting for your network. Do not forget to continuously update this list, even after you have moved on to the next step. The longer your list, the better chance you have at building a large and powerful network.
3. Do your homework
Once you have a substantial list of companies in which you are interested, begin researching them. You will want to know if they are a high-end store and if you want their customers frequenting your business. Determine whether or not the company is one you would like to be associated with. Do they exemplify the values that are most important within your own company? Be selective and remember that you will be sending your best customers to their company. Their service will be a reflection of your company and its values.
Look for companies that have taken the time to create and maintain an impressive website. This will give you the opportunity to learn more about their business and will provide countless opportunities for marketing within your network in the future. You should also try to recruit companies with strong brands, so that your brand will strengthen when you co-brand with them.
4. Establish contact
After you have learned about the companies on your list, you should begin establishing contact with them. Your means of presentation will vary depending on what you are comfortable wit
Consumers perceive and accept many brands within a certain trade group in different ways. By personifying a brand (How would you describe brand X if it were a person?) we can find out, that for instance consumers perceive brand A as a young, impulsive, lively, attractive, energetic woman full of ideas. In the same way could brand B be an elderly, conservative and relaxed man. The brand can also have a completely inexpressive and bad image. That is how brand C may not have any real personal characteristics, slim, tall, unnoticeable and calm.The image basically expresses a way a consumer thinks about the brand and the feelings the brand arouses when the consumer thinks about it. On the basis of these characteristics, which the consumer associates with the brand, th
3. Do your homework
Once you have a substantial list of companies in which you are interested, begin researching them. You will want to know if they are a high-end store and if you want their customers frequenting your business. Determine whether or not the company is one you would like to be associated with. Do they exemplify the values that are most important within your own company? Be selective and remember that you will be sending your best customers to their company. Their service will be a reflection of your company and its values.
Look for companies that have taken the time to create and maintain an impressive website. This will give you the opportunity to learn more about their business and will provide countless opportunities for marketing within your network in the future. You should also try to recruit companies with strong brands, so that your brand will strengthen when you co-brand with them.
4. Establish contact
After you have learned about the companies on your list, you should begin establishing contact with them. Your means of presentation will vary depending on what you are comfortable wit
1. Find The Obvious - Drucker looked for the obvious things in order to identify people’s greatest needs. It takes discipline to find them…and will lead to tremendous opportunities in your small business.2. Help Employees Grow - Show the employees of your small business how to learn. In the knowledge economy we have today, Drucker believed continuous learning is the key for growth.3. Teach - To become a better learner…teach. Drucker taught American history, Japanese art, religion and statistics during his career, because teaching requires learning new concepts, not just facts.4. Measure Yourself - Whenever you make a key decision, write down your expectations of the outcome, then go back nine months later and see how thin
Look for companies that have taken the time to create and maintain an impressive website. This will give you the opportunity to learn more about their business and will provide countless opportunities for marketing within your network in the future. You should also try to recruit companies with strong brands, so that your brand will strengthen when you co-brand with them.
4. Establish contact
After you have learned about the companies on your list, you should begin establishing contact with them. Your means of presentation will vary depending on what you are comfortable with and how you feel you will best be received.
A letter is obviously not the most effective means of initial contact. It can be impersonal and easily discarded. It does not demand their attention like a personal visit will. However, it is a simple way to cast a wide net and see what you catch. You should use this method if you simply do not have the time to visit these businesses individually, or if you have enough relationships already established in your community to recruit 3-5 companies into your guerilla network right from the start.
I recommend that you simply ask the owner for a few minutes of his or her time. You can initiate this meeting through a letter, by phone or by just walking in. Because you are not selling anything, this meeting should be relatively easy to set up.
These few minutes with the owner will allow you the chance to determine if they are the type of person with whom you can work. You will also explain who you are and what you will accomplish through this partnership with local companies. Impress the owner with a professionally designed and bound brief of your strategic plan. These professional packets include company logos on a few conceptual pieces that could be used in a guerilla marketing program.
It goes unsaid that this network will generate more traffic for your business, so focus their attention on the benefits THEY will receive from the network. Let them know that you have already noticed that some of your customers would be great referrals for their business. The promise of immediate results will be sure to catch their attention.
5. Follow through
After you have established a relationship with the company, be sure to follow through with your arrangement. Everything you and your guerilla partner agree to do needs to be thoroughly discussed and put into writing. You should set up parameters and expectations of the marketing program and agree on a specific date to begin and end each program. When the regulations of the agreement are clear, both parties will be more likely to follow through and benefit from the guerilla network.
The ideal partnership is one that remains balanced: each company putting in an equal amount of work and reaping an equal reward. By becoming a part of a strong guerilla network, you will be a major resource for each customer’s unique needs. Your company will gain ideas, support and loyal customers from partnering companies and your marketing audience will expand dramatically without the costly risk of traditional advertising.
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